Space Witch

Let the Right One In

There’s no shortage of story shifts and grand transitions this week. We’ve got two distant planets participating in a tense showdown on Thursday. Beginning Friday, Saturn starts to rumble as it prepares to reverse next week. Nearby planets Mercury and Venus will both change signs by Sunday, mellowing our words and tamping down hasty reactions. All this plus a Venus retrograde that continues to demand honest relationship reflection.

If you’re tired of this Venus retrograde, you’re not alone. Discussing that same relationship issue yet again, revisiting unfinished creative business, and struggling with old social thorns may be vital for our growth, but the work is also uncomfortable and humbling. We’re all deep-cleaning our approaches to intimacy and encountering some sticky cobwebs in the process.

A Venus retrograde is notorious for bringing back old flames and associates. However, this week, it’s especially important to remember that not everyone from your past who reaches out is worthy of letting back into your life. Sometimes chaos and danger come as characters claiming to care about you yet don’t have your best interest in mind. Remember: You get to draw your own boundaries, decide who to allow in and who to keep out. Your heart is a strong-yet-vulnerable muscle worth protecting, and it’s perfectly okay to tell someone “nope.”

VENUS RETURNS

Our feelings about what we value, what we want to create, what’s worth our energy and who we want to partner with in the future will become clearer to us after Friday. Here’s why: Last weekend, Venus appeared to drop beneath the horizon, slipping out of sight for a while. On Friday, though, the planet of love and beauty returns to the sky, this time as a morning star. Because Venus is currently so close to the Earth, it’s easier for us to perceive what we truly desire. Though Venus the morning star can be fierce and quick to pick a fight, tempers ought to cool down significantly starting Sunday, when it leaves I-gotta-get-my-way Aries and settles into the empathetic, harmony-minded sign of Pisces.

Not only is Venus switching signs this week, but Mercury is also ditching Aries and entering earth sign Taurus on Friday. Mercury in grounded, practical Taurus reduces reactive, hasty communication and increases our chances of reaching a negotiation or compromise. With Mercury in Taurus, you can also expect thoughts and conversations to shift toward financial matters and material needs.

POWERFUL PLUTO

On Thursday, Pluto and Jupiter face off in a stressful squabble called a “square.” Squares add tension and pressure to our unfolding path. Because Pluto is involved, Thursday’s square requires big change and lasting transformation on our part. It might not feel fair or friendly, but this square can spark important alterations that need to occur. Perhaps there’s an ongoing power imbalance in your relationship or at work that calls for major adjustment. Is it time to break up with your bank and join a credit union? This is a chance to drop outworn approaches to the problem and wipe the slate clean.

Pluto-in-Capricorn represents old power structures and traditions, while Jupiter-in-Libra symbolizes cooperation and justice. We witnessed a Jupiter-Pluto square on Thanksgiving Day last year, and we’ll see another on August 4. Whatever happens on Thursday might be related to the 2016 square, and you might see resolution to this week’s square in August. So don’t lose hope. The story isn’t necessarily over yet! With so much action in the sky right now, be sure to stop and catch your breath between sprints.

DATES TO WATCH

On Wednesday the 29th, you may meet new people who can help you achieve future goals. Thursday the 30th is the day when Jupiter and Pluto face off and shake up how things have always been. Friday the 31st reveals something that may disturb you, but don’t look away. Also: Saturn is gearing up to turn retrograde next week, so five days before it does (beginning Friday) we’ll start seeing Saturn-related themes pop up. Expect issues of commitment, limits, maturity and long-term stability to flavor the week. A Cancer moon on Sunday the 2nd sets the stage for nurturing and home focus. Soak up the down time and tenderness, because Monday the 3rd looks rough.